Hell to Pay
by Culinaromancer
Summary: Luke returns safely, but Van's up to no good, again! So, with the help of a mysterious girl, can they stop him before it's too late? -REWRITTEN!-
1. Late Night Antics

**Author's Note: I finally got this out again! Just for you information, I'm rewriting the story, but a little differently. It should stay similar to the old one, but still be different. And for anyone new to this story, Ivalee is thirteen, like Anise.**

Ivalee paced down the hallway as fast as she could. There were Oracles knights were practically swarming the area, blocking most of the doors. She ducked around another corner as a guard casually walked by. She was about to be on her way again when a rather familiar green-haired boy appeared next to the knight.

"Keep on the lookout for Ivalee. She's got red hair and red eyes, and if you find her, take her directly to my room." The God-General continued on his way down the hallway. Ivalee pressed her back against the wall, praying Sync wouldn't notice her.

When Ivalee looked around the corner, the hallway was once again clear. She slipped out unnoticed and hurried down the hallway. Her destination was only a minute away.

"Don't move." She heard Sync's voice from behind. Ivalee mentally cursed her bad luck. Her body whipped around to face him.

"Don't try and stop me." Ivalee warned. Her piercing red gaze met with his glaring green one. She took a step back, only to have Sync take a step forward.

"You know that the Commandant doesn't agree with what you're trying to do, so stand down." He moved forward again, but she just moved backward. Their steps were in tune with each other.

"I'll only stop if he stops his plan." Ivalee replied. "If not, then I'll leave."

"He won't stop, you know that. And you're not leaving, since you know too much of what he's planning." Sync took another footstep forward.

"Fine. I'll just go and-" Ivalee stopped in mid-sentence and took off in the another direction. Sync followed her down the twisting hallways of the cathedral.

Ivalee ran up the stairs and around the bend. Her hand gripped the handle of the door at the end of the hallway and she twisted it. The door swung open, revealing Anise asleep in bed.

"Anise?" Ivalee shut the door and walked over to the bed. Anise rolled over and her eyes flicked open.

"Huh?" She rubbed her eyes.

"Anise, I need you to stop Van. He's planning something real-"

The door slammed open and the lights turned on. Both teenage girls whipped around to see none-other-than Sync standing at the doorway. Sync stormed up to Ivalee and grabbed her arm. He started for the door with her in tow.

"Anise, go-" Sync's hand clasped over Ivalee's mouth and continued to half-drag her. She tried to rip his hand off her mouth, but his grip was too strong. He shut the door behind them both, but Ivalee reached out and grasped the doorknob. Sync pulled her back, but she wouldn't give up.

He let go of her mouth and instead, used his hand to pry her off the handle. Then Sync swung her around so that her head was next to his chest and her legs were held by one of his arms. (Kind of like bridal style except her body is leaned forward more and he is holding her hands behind her back instead of her back with his right hand.)

"Sync," She growled. "if you don't put me down right now, I swear all hell will break loose on you."

"I don't believe you could do that, or anything more than a small cut or bruise." He retorted. Ivalee glared at him for what seemed like an eternity.

"Fine then, you asked for it." Ivalee kicked her leg up and hit his chin. She boosted herself into a flip and landed out of his hands. Her foot then connected with his side and sent his to the floor. "Believe that, bastard!" She sped back the way towards Anise's room.

Ivalee glanced back to see if he was following her. There was no sign of him down the hallway, so she thought she was in the clear. She _thought_ so, that is, until she slammed into him. She landed on the floor in front of Sync, with her mouth wide open and eyes staring.

"But how-" Sync picked her up again and brought her face directly in front of his.

"Don't try that again." He whispered into her ear. Ivalee felt his hand on her neck, making her right shoulder twitch upward. Then it all went black.


	2. Not Moving Forward

Hell to Pay

Ivalee blinked her eyes opened and glanced around the room. She was in her bed in her room, right next to the other God-Generals' rooms. Her head hurt like crazy, and her right arm felt as if it was on fire. _What happened?_ She thought to herself. Come to think of it, she never even remembered going to bed...

There was a knock on the door. Ivalee rubbed her eyes and sat up. She was wearing her usual outfit, long black pants with a dark blue shirt with short sleeves, grey gloves and matching high heels.

"Are you awake?" The person behind the door demanded.

"Mmm…" She was still half asleep and wasn't exactly expecting company. The door opened up, with Sync standing at the door. The second he was within sight, her arm flared up.

"Grab your bag and let's go." He stated. Ivalee stretched her arms up in the air for a second before standing up. She ignored the pain in her right arm.

"Why? Where're we going?"

"We're going to go to Grand Chokmah."

"Oh…Why?" He shot her an icy glare, making her uncomfortable. She wasn't going to get an answer from him anytime soon. Ivalee rushed to pack some clothes into her item bag, throwing a few gels and bottles. Her hand reached out to grab her notebook and pencil, but Sync appeared out of nowhere behind her and beat her to it. Her breath hitched. Sync flipped through, scanning the pages. His eyes met her frightened look.

"What is this?" He questioned.

"Um, nothing," She replied quickly, swiping the book from his hands. His curious expression didn't leave her face. Ivalee stuffed the items in the bag and looked back up at him. Again, he made her uncomfortable. Not to mention that his face was only a half a foot away. Her heart started to beat faster as minutes ticked by, and yet Sync did not letting his gaze drop.

He finally moved, swiftly leaving the room. She followed him, not paying attention to her blazing arm.

--

The carriage rocked back and forth over the rough stones. Sync's vision drifted next to him and he watched Ivalee stare at her hands, like she did on the boat ride earlier. She hadn't said a word since they left her room back in Daath.

Her head tilted slight sideways towards the window. It was opened halfway, letting the breeze fill the little space they had. The scenery passed by, though he didn't know why Ivalee hadn't mentioned something about how it wasn't the road to Grand Chokmah. Then the thought occurred to him that she hadn't been out of the holy city more than five times. Twice with him, excluding this one, and another with Van once. She might have traveled with Legretta one time while he was away, but he couldn't remember for sure.

The wheel ran over a large stone, tipping Ivalee over and onto his lap. Unlike her, he was as steady as the stone they ran over. She had never really been ready for unexpected things. Her cheeks turned red from embarrassment and she sat up immediately, not looking at him. Sync continued to gaze at her, before he caught himself inching closer. He quickly and discreetly moved back to the opposite end of the carriage, silently berating himself. And for once, his cheeks turned light pink.

"Sorry," The man driving the carriage apologized. They were almost to their destination, so lucky for him, he didn't have to suffer for long. Pretty soon, it'd be Ivalee suffering. Though, the thought didn't seem to make him want to smirk like usually. Was he actually…caring for her? Sync shook his head, because it wouldn't matter if he cared for her or not, as long as Van's plan worked out.

It halted abruptly, almost knocking Ivalee over. She glanced outside before looking back at him.

"This isn't Grand Chokmah," She stated. Her eyes narrowed. He honestly didn't think it would take her that long to figure out that they weren't headed to Grand Chokmah. Sync opened the door and slid out. Ivalee followed in suit, meeting him behind the stagecoach.

"What are you trying to do?" Ivalee hissed. He pulled the two bags from out of the trunk and handed hers to her. She snatched it away from him, still glaring.

"I'm not _trying _to do anything," Sync replied. She relaxed, though her posture stiffened as he continued: "Well, to say that I'm not _succeeding_ in doing something would be a lie."

"Where are we going?!" Ivalee shouted as they walked away from the wagon.

"Where I'm going and you're going are two different places."

"What are you talking about?!" He whipped around, clenching his fists.

"_You're_ going to face the consequences while _I'm _going to head back to Daath!" Sync glared straight into Ivalee's suddenly terrified eyes. He was losing his temper again, wasn't he? Taking a deep breath, he continued down the path, dragging Ivalee with him. _Calm down_, he constantly reminded himself. But he didn't notice her wince when he grasped her right wrist.

She didn't struggle like she usually would have. _Odd…_ Glancing back, he realized that she was still pretty freaked out by his outburst. The urge to say sorry appeared, but he pushed it back; God-General Sync the Tempest does _not_ say sorry.

"Sync," Ivalee whispered. "are you okay?" She obviously hadn't seen him this angered in a while. And she wouldn't see him much longer since he was dropping her off, then heading back. It'd better if he never saw her again. Better for her, better for him. He couldn't care for anyone, and no one could care for him. In the end, it wouldn't matter. None of it.

"Yea," he replied. _Hmm…not really, but she'll live…hopefully. As long as Van doesn't do anything irrational…_

They arrived at Kaitzur and went ahead on in. Ivalee had relaxed, though he still refused to let go of her hand. He tried to convince himself that it was because that he didn't want her running away, but failed miserably. Either way, she didn't seem to mind…much.

His eyes found the building that he was supposed to be taking Ivalee to; where Van was. It was as if bricks were strapped to the bottom of feet as he made his way over to it. Every step, every movement…became harder.

At the moment they were in front of the door, he wished Ivalee would put up a fight. He wished she would just run and leave, trying to slip out of his grasp like she did back in Daath. But to his dismay, she didn't.

The door opened before he could knock, and the moment he'd been wishing wouldn't happen, was right there. Two seconds away. Van nodded to Ivalee before motioning for Ivalee to come in. She did so, and he let her wrist slide between his fingers. Van looked back to him, but Sync made no movement to join them. He silently shut the door, seeing that Sync didn't want to stay.

He turned away emotionlessly. It took more effort than ever before to force his legs to move forward. And when he was a few feet away, he heard her yelp loudly. It took every ounce of will power to not go back and rescue her from that nightmare. But he couldn't. He couldn't turn around…Not now, not ever…

**Author's Note: Sad, isn't it? Or maybe not. I dunno, it's your opinion. Please R&R!**


	3. Chained

Hell to Pay

Author's Note: Late, I know. DX

Anise waited impatiently for her guests to arrive. She'd sent out the letters yesterday, so if her assumptions were correct, then they'd get to Daath sometime before three in the afternoon. And right then, it was two-fifty seven, to be exact. Her foot tapped rapidly on the tile, annoyed by their late arrival.

"Hey Anise!" Luke shouted, waving. The rest of the group trailed in after, smiling at her. _Jeez, what took them so long…?_

"Why'd you call us here so suddenly?" Tear inquired.

"Well," Anise started, glancing around the room to make sure no one was listening. "there was this commotion last night, and I thought it might be important."

"What happened?" Guy asked curiously. She repeated the short encounter, watching their expressions as she explained that Sync was somehow alive.

"But that's not possible!" Natalia exclaimed. "We killed him at Eldrant. Didn't we?"

"Yes, we did. Hmm… I suppose it is possible…" Jade pondered. "Since we never did see him disappear, I assume we actually didn't kill him. Instead, only injuring him."

"What?" Luke looked at him incredulously.

"Exactly as I said. Keep up, Luke." He joked.

"H-hey! I didn't mea-"

"Luke," Guy sighed. "just give it up. You're never going to win against him." Jade smirked, sensing victory.

"Oh, whatever."

"Can we get back to problem at hand now?" Natalia said irritably, glaring momentarily at Luke.

"So who do you think that was?" Tear asked. Anise shrugged, since she had no clue.

"You're sure she had red hair?" Jade eyed Anise skeptically.

"Positive."

"Then it's safe to say that she could be another replica." Silence engulfed the area. Everyone was well aware that Asch wasn't coming back.

--

As the door closed, Ivalee turned, ready for her punishment. What she didn't expect was to be greeted by a liger.

"Ahh!" She yelped, jumping back. Arietta was at the back of the room, holding her doll…still. Van took a seat at the desk there. This must've been one of his offices.

"Sync sent a letter ahead informing me of your actions," Van stated, holding a piece of paper folded multiple times. Ivalee inwardly grimaced, carefully, taking a small step back. She tried to go unnoticed, but the liger growled. _Damn monster,_ she thought. One of the only animals she actually hated, and was even partially afraid of.

"Are you going to explain?" He asked. "Or defend yourself in some way?" She stayed still and silent. The Commandant sighed, putting the paper down.

"Change of plans." He said suddenly. "Since I can't trust you alone anymore, I'll have Sync watch over you." Van said.

She fumed. _Sync?!_ She had just gotten away from him, and now she had to go running back?! And be demoted under him?! How humiliating.

Van waved his hand. "I'll have the guard escort you back to Sync." As Ivalee left, Van sighed again, letting Arietta leave as well.

He knew this was going to happen sooner or later. It _always_ happened. Teenagers can never make up their mind, and change their thoughts in an instant.

--

Sync dragged his feet further and further towards the Kaitzur Naval Port. He kept wondering how Van was going to punish Ivalee. _She'll probably be locked in her room for a few days again… _Last time she acted up, Van had her stuck in her own room for a while, and forced Sync to bring her food and water.

"Sir!" A voice called from behind him. He turned, but froze when he saw a soldier running towards him, with Ivalee in tow. Her head was tilted down, so he couldn't see her expression. "Commandant Grants told me to bring her to you. He also wrote a note." The man, probably in his mid-thirties, held out a sheet of folded paper. He snatched the paper and scanned the letter quickly.

_Sync,_

_I need you to look out for her. Don't let her out of your sight, and do anything to keep her near you._

_Commandant Van Grants_

Do anything to keep her near him? _What could that mean?_ He thought. It could've been just him, but he could've sworn there was something behind his words.

Ivalee sighed, bringing his attention back to the matter at hand.

"Uh, yea. Dismissed." Sync stated, letting the officer run back the way he came. Once the man was out of sight, he turned to Ivalee. She rocked back and forth on her heels, looking at everything except him.

"Are you planning on standing there the rest of your life, or are you going to get going?" Sync asked bitterly, crossing his arms. Finally, she brought her eyes to his face. She obviously wasn't happy.

"I was hoping to stay here. At least it's better than being with _you._" She snarled the last word, looking away again. Taking a deep breath, he gathered his thoughts together.

"Well, I don't give a damn about what you care about, so get going." He slapped her hard on the back, watching her trudge the path to Kaitzur Naval Port. Sync could've sworn he heard her mutter something, but it was impossible for it to be what he heard.

"Then you must not care about yourself." She had murmured to herself, obviously not expecting for him to hear. But he assumed he had it wrong. There was no way in hell that _Ivalee_ would ever have any sort of feelings, besides hate, towards him.

--

For the past few hours, Ivalee had become increasingly annoying. She was rude, stubborn, and outright disrespectful. Not like the person he had originally known.

"Get off the damn boat!" Sync shouted at Ivalee, who was currently sitting in the cabin, on her bed. Her arms were crossed, and she refused to look at him. She shook her head. The ship had just docked, and was calling for passengers to get off.

"Fine!" He huffed, gripping her upper arm. She jumped, but settled a second later. Ivalee winced at his tight hold. Sync pulled her up and off the bed, dragging her towards the door.

"Hey!" She shouted, struggling. Her fingernails dug into his skin, causing him to drop her.

"Dammit!" He yelled. On his arm were five red marks, but luckily it didn't break skin. Ivalee was scurrying back to the bed. "Get back here!" Sync reached out and grabbed one of her ankles.

"Get away from me!" Ivalee tried to kick him away, but he was stronger and pulled her towards him. Grabbing her wrist, Sync dragged her to her feet. She scowled.

"You're acting like a baby," He stated, continuing out the door with her in toll.

"Well, at least it's better than acting like an ass." Ivalee retorted.

"Get used to it."


End file.
